As Mississippians head to the polls Aug. 6 for primaries, they remain split on who has the best football team, who has the best barbecue and even if the state is headed in the right direction — but nearly 70 percent of them believe public schools deserve more funding.

BROOKHAVEN — More than six decades after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled segregated schools unconstitutional, one Mississippi school district has largely segregated classrooms — some all-black, some majority white.

LEXINGTON — Kristy Thomas, a fourth grade English teacher at William Dean Jr. Elementary in Holmes County, smiled at her students as she walked down the rows of desks, handing back their graded vocabulary and spelling tests. One student looked at his marks and put down his exam, while announcing, “I’m just dumb.”

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